Happy Fall! I hope everyone had a great summer. My wife and I added our 2nd child to our family, that’s part of the reason it’s been radio silence on my end. But really, when you look at the offseason the Bulls have had, there hasn’t been a ton to talk about.
Summer League came and went, with more disappointment than encouragement for me. Dalen Terry didn’t look very good on offense, and rookie Julian Philips, while not awful in any of his playing time, certainly didn’t “wow” either.
Free agency was solid. Arturas Karnisovas and Marc Eversley picked up a couple substantial veterans in Jevon Carter and Torrey Craig, while re-signing Nikola Vucevic and Ayo Dosunmu. Andre Drummond decided to pick up the player option for this season with the Bulls, so at least we get to experience the entertaining roller-coaster that is his playing time.
One name to keep in the back of your mind is Onuralp Bitim, a 24 year old, 6′ 6″ forward out of Turkey. AK signed Bitim to a 2-way G League contract, but he has some scoring chops and is supposedly a solid 3 point threat. We’ll see if Billy Donovan gives him any meaningful playing time.
SEASON EXPECTATIONS
I don’t have huge expectations for the Bulls this season. After last seasons disappointing finish, I can’t get on the Bulls hype train. As of this morning, the odds makers have the Bulls win total for this upcoming season at 37.5. That seems a bit low, considering they won 40 games last season with a team, that on paper, appears to be worse than this current roster. That being said, I expect the team to hover around .500 and push for a lukewarm Play-in berth.
Making the Playoffs will probably come down to whether or not DeMar DeRozan/Zach LaVine hit a couple of key shots at the end of some critical games, and avoid turning the ball over in crunch time.
ROSTER MASH
The big roster battles that could play out during training camp and pre-season will be at point guard and power forward. At point guard, Coby White, Jevon Carter, and Ayo Dosunmu, all have a shot at starting minutes. White really came on at the end of last season, his ball handling skills improved dramatically last summer, his decision making was solid, and his defense was competent. Jevon Carter is a younger, better version of Patrick Beverley, who brings experience and confidence to the Bulls point guard rotation. Ayo had a bad sophomore season, but I fully expect him to bounce back. His defense is strong, and with an offseason to work on his shooting confidence and passing skills, there is a very real chance for him to be the Bulls starting PG.
At power forward, this is a big year for Patrick Williams (just like every season before it). Torrey Craig could easily step in as the starter with the veteran squad AKME have assembled. He is a competent wing that doesn’t hesitate to shoot the three and has a reputation as a solid defender. Williams will have to show he’s not afraid to take threes if he wants to keep his starting job. And let’s not forget about one of the top 5 defenders in the league, Alex Caruso. Donovan loves putting Caruso in as an undersized forward, hell, he even matches him up on Giannis when he gets a chance. If Donovan decides to sell out on defense (like he has the last couple seasons), Caruso could very easily be the opening day starting power forward for the Bulls.
Meanwhile, the Mid Three have another season to gel together. I’m excited to see what improvements LaVine has made to his game. He comes into every season better than he was in the previous season. I expect this year to be no different.
DeMar DeRozan says he wants to end his career as a Chicago Bull. The 34 year old has one last contract in him, but he’ll need to earn it this season if he wants to ride off into the Madison Avenue sunset. He is a master mid-range shot maker, and a turnstile on defense. Let’s see if he can hold off Father Time long enough to stay in Chicago another few seasons.
Vucevic earned his new contract with the Bulls. While not the greatest big man in the league, the former two time All-Star isn’t the slouch a lot of Bulls fans think he is. With a fresh contract and another season with a stable core of players around him, I’m assuming we’ll see some typical Vucevic numbers and performances this season.
The Mid Three have another season together, and it could be their last. My bold prediction for the 2023-’24 Chicago Bulls is this: If the Bulls don’t get off to a strong start, the Front Office will blow it up at the Trade Deadline. If the Bulls are floundering before Christmas, you can bet there will be plenty of teams sniffing around for the likes of DeRozan, LaVine, and Caruso. Let’s hope it doesn’t come to that!
Until it does, thanks for reading, thanks for subscribing, and GO BULLS!
RokDeez Bulls Blog 